Lake District locals demand tourists are fined after litter ‘epidemic’

Campaigners have demanded tourists are fined amid an epidemic of litter and fly-camping in the Lake District, amid claims they are ruining the area’s beauty spots.

Friends of the Lake District have conducted a survey which highlighted anti-social parking, flytipping and general littering are commonly seen by locals, and it’s no longer limited to the most famous scenic locations. 

Many residents have reported a scourge of rubbish being left strewn across beaches, by lakes and around scenic trails, and are now calling for the introduction of a tourism tax, levied to allow more resources to be aimed at the problem.

The group returned similar results in last year’s survey, which found that the area’s 18 million annual visitors can ‘exceed the capacity’ of the local infrastructure.

But it noted that Lake District tourism is very valuable and is thought to contribute £2.3 billion to the local economy, as well as supporting some 65,000 jobs. 

Since then, picturesque attractions such as the Lakes have become ever more fashionable, following the relocation of several high profile US celebrities from Trump’s America – most notably Ellen DeGeneres, who now lives in the Cotswolds.

Around two thirds of people who completed the survey said problems in the area had gotten worse over the past year. 

The principal affected areas are Ullswater and Derwentwater, with high levels of anti-social behaviour also being reported in Buttermere, Borrowdale and Ennerdale, suggesting that these sorts of tourism impacts are no longer confined to longstanding hotspots around Windermere. 

A shocking 97 percent of 785 respondents said they had encountered litter, 80 percent reported wild-fires or barbecues and 77 percent fly-camping – the act of setting up a campsite and leaving your gear behind.

Meanwhile 34 percent said they had received an aggressive reaction when challenging those responsible.

Friends of the Lake District’s Head of Campaigns and Engagement, Jeremy Smith, said: ‘These findings paint a very worrying picture.

‘There is a visual impact from piles of rubbish around our lake shores and there are risks to the health of wildlife as well as people.

‘Most troubling of all, this situation is making local residents afraid to walk their favourite walks and unable to enjoy the countryside around where they live.’

A sizeable majority – 65 percent – of respondents judge that the situation this year to be worse than last year.

Some of those contacted by Friends of the Lakes, such as the National Trust, lack the authority to tackle the situation with measures such as moving people on.

The organisation accused those who do have the authority of setting high thresholds for getting involved: a wild fire on the brink of escalating or a fly-camper who has become aggressive.

It has led to many local people choosing to pick up after fly-campers themselves – in effect, to solve the problem themselves because they either don’t know who best to report to or receive an unsatisfactory reaction when doing so.

The charity also found that despite some measures being taken, they were not always adequately followed up. 

At Wastwater, posters were put up with numbers to call if people started barbecues on the beach, but those using the facility said the police were ‘totally disinterested’.

From the survey, the charity added that there is a strong feeling that those with a stake in these issues – particularly Cumberland Council Westmorland & Furness Council, the Lake District National Park Authority and the police – need to take more seriously the impact on residents’ sense of security, well-being and their enjoyment of the natural spaces around where they live.

When asked what steps they think should be taken, respondents favoured a combination of more patrols and tougher penalties – a ‘catch and punish’ mentality that reveals the strength of feeling of local residents and the sense that many are at the end of their tether.

A tourist tax was also frequently mentioned – a concept which already exists in parts of England, and that has the support of local politicians. 

Tony Lywood, a former Labour councillor and ex-member of the Lake District National Park Authority, who lives in Keswick, previously told the Mail: ‘I think it would work.

‘Bedroom taxes on hotel rooms don’t deter tourists in cities such as Amsterdam or Venice, so why not here?

‘My wife and I were in Venice for our wedding anniversary and there was a tourist tax but we barely noticed it. It would provide money for infrastructure, decent car parks, public toilets.

‘At the moment, people can come here for the day having filled up their car and bought food elsewhere, then contribute nothing towards the cost of looking after the national park.’

A tourist tax typically involves adding a small levy onto the cost of any overnight accommodation in the area. 

The Mail visited Ambleside in the Lake District this summer, and found many concerned locals echoing the results of the survey.

Matt Parker, 46, said he often saw ‘inconsiderate’ tourists dumping their cars and blocking up roads with traffic.

Mr Parker said: ‘The number of tourists coming to Ambleside has a massive negative impact on locals living here.

‘This usually causes massive traffic jams because the roads just aren’t big enough to cope.

‘It could cost lives if the emergency services or mountain rescue got stuck in the traffic.

Laura Windle, 39, said: ‘It is a really difficult one because most of the job and business in the area depend on tourism. Without tourists, the area would die.

‘The problem we face is that it is each year is just getting busier and busier. On a warm summer’s day, the streets are absolutely packed.

‘You have those who have booked for a few days and other who have just come for the day to take advantage of the warm weather. I try to avoid the centre during the summer.’

Responding to the survey, local Mr Smith added: ‘What we need is a reset in public understanding of what is acceptable.

‘Providing clarity as to what is permitted is part of the solution, but there also needs to be more tactical patrolling backed up by proper enforcement.

‘A few fines for breaches of Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs) would go a long way if widely publicised.

‘The point is deterrence not punishment – and signalling to residents that they’re no longer being ignored.’

Westmorland & Furness Council is exploring the extension of PSPOs into other tourist hotspots.

Many survey respondents concluded that a visitor tax would help fund a more proportionate response.

One said: ‘We really need more folk on the ground which will only happen once a tourist tax is imposed and we have the resources to have feet on the ground to manage this problem.’

Mr Smith said: ‘This summer has been awful.

‘We welcome the fact that littering and fly-camping are being taken more seriously, but if words don’t translate into action, the sense of disconnect between residents and the authorities will intensify.

‘These issues cannot be allowed to fall off the agenda as the main summer season ends.

‘The police, councils and the National Park need a more proactive approach to prevent this situation escalating out of control again next year.’